Listen to Robert Emmerich introduce The Big Apple, a hit song from 1937. Music written by Bob and performed by Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven with Bob on piano. Lyrics written by Buddy Bernier and sung by Edythe Wright. Audio provided by Dorothy Emmerich.

Nashville, Tennessee is known as “Music City, U.S.A.” because of its country music traditions. Austin, Texas had a growing music scene in the 1970s and “second Nashville” became an infrequently used nickname. “Although Austin rarely claims to be a second Nashville” was cited in The Billboard on November 28, 1981. “‘Second Nashville,’ as Austin is sometimes called” was cited in The Christian Science Monitor on March 31, 1982.

Wikipedia: Austin, TexasAustin is the capital of the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Travis County. Austin is the 11th-most populated city in the U.S and the 4th-most populated city in Texas.
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Residents of Austin are known as Austinites. They include a diverse mix of government employees, college students, musicians, high-tech workers, blue-collar workers, and businesspeople. The city’s official slogan promotes Austin as “The Live Music Capital of the World”, a reference to the many musicians and live music venues within the city, as well as the long-running PBS TV concert series Austin City Limits.

Wikipedia: Nashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in the north central part of the state. The city is a center for the music, healthcare, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and home to numerous colleges and universities. Reflecting the city’s position in state government, Nashville is home to the Tennessee Supreme Court’s courthouse for Middle Tennessee. It is known as a center of the country music industry, earning it the nickname “Music City U.S.A.”

28 November 1981, The Billboard, “Texas: Frontier Heritage Drives Homebred Artists Who Stay” pg. &-45, col. 2:
Although Austin rarely claims to be a second Nashville, an original musical play entitled “Nashville Road,” written by Texas playwright Rod Russell and Isabella Ides, recently was performed at Center Stage.

31 March 1982, The Christian Science Monitor (Boston, MA), “TV’s ‘City Limits’ puts Austin on the country music map” by Scott Armstrong, pg. B8, col. 1:
At the very least, the concept and evolution of the program over the years reflects some of the changes that have occurred in the “second Nashville,” as Austin is sometimes called, and in much of the growing Sunbelt.

10 April 1983, Los Angeles (CA) Times, “History Flavors Austin’s Appeal” by Frank Riley, pt. 4, pg. 16, col. 1:
During the last decade Austin has acquired a national reputation as a “second Nashville” and birthplace of “progressive country music.”

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MoseBuchele
‏@MoseBuchele
Before Austin was the Live Music Capital, this pamphlet called it a “second Nashville.” Wouldnt go over well today.
1:50 PM - 2 Sep 2016

KUT 90.5 (Austin’s NPR Station)
September 21, 2016
How Did Austin Become the Live Music Capital of the World?
By MOSE BUCHELE
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By that time the Austin Chamber of Commerce had also taken note. One Chamber pamphlet from the ‘70s said people were calling Austin a “Second Nashville.” Through the ‘80s and ‘90s, the scene expanded to embrace blues, punk, new wave. The Austin City Limits public television show grew in popularity.

By the time SXSW started up, the Austin city government began to see music as a money maker. It created the Austin Music Commission to foster the industry in 1988. Clearly, “Second Nashville” wasn’t going to cut it.